


Every Time We Touch

by cellywelly



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Pining, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, powers kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-19
Updated: 2018-01-19
Packaged: 2019-03-06 15:04:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13413801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cellywelly/pseuds/cellywelly
Summary: Prompt #186Title: Every Time We TouchRating: PG13Word Count: 7367Warnings: mentions of alcohol and some swearingSummary: Baekhyun lights up every time Jongdae touches him. Literally.Author’s Note: ahhh this is such a cotton candy messto the prompter, i really really hope you're happy with this! <3 i gave it my best shotto my friends who always cheer me on when i start fussing about my writing, i love you guysto any other readers, please enjoy!!finally, to the mods: thank you for organizing a precious fic fest for a precious pairing, i love baekchen so much and i was so happy to be able to write for them as part of this :)





	Every Time We Touch

The first time it happens, Baekhyun is in their shared living room watching Jongdae study.  


He’s lazily draped across the couch while Jongdae is at the dinner table, bent over a textbook with his favorite green highlighter in hand and his glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose. Baekhyun’s always thought Jongdae looked unfairly cute with glasses on.  


He concentrates for a moment and then the light is hitting Jongdae in just the right way, long eyelashes dusting over his cheeks and skin warm with a slight tan.  


“Baek,” Jongdae says. He looks up through his lashes, smiling crookedly.  


Baekhyun snaps from his reverie, heart skipping a little beat when his name is called. He meets Jongdae’s eyes with his own wide in surprise.  


“Stop ignoring your messages. And also, you’re moving the light into my eyes.”  


The reprimand has Baekhyun startling and dropping sunbeams back into their original place where they scatter just barely across Jongdae’s textbooks. He hadn’t even noticed his phone buzzing with Tinder notifications in his hand, too busy staring at Jongdae.  


“S-sorry,” he says, cheeks dusting pink. Now his heart is going a million miles an hour and Jongdae is watching him a little strangely, because Baekhyun stuttering? Baekhyun zoning out and ignoring the compliments regularly showered on him by people hoping to get into his pants?  


“You okay, Baekhyunnie?”  


The word ‘shit’ is playing over and over in Baekhyun’s head like a mantra and he only panics harder when Jongdae gets up to walk towards him.  


“I’m fine! Totally fine, just, uh, had my head in the clouds, you know, happens to the best of us-“ he chuckles nervously and then the sound completely dies in his throat when Jongdae reaches out to touch the back of his hand to Baekhyun’s forehead, checking for a fever.  


Baekhyun wants to scream. Instead, his heart skips a big beat and then he lights up. Literally.  


Jongdae is confused.  


And Baekhyun is fucked, because he is undeniably and irrevocably crushing on his best friend.  


\---  


“So you’re saying that whenever you touch Baekhyun he _shines_?” Junmyeon asks, voice full of incredulity.  


Baekhyun is sitting with Jongdae on Junmyeon’s sofa. They decided this kind of emergency meeting was better held in Junmyeon’s four-person apartment than their tiny two-bedroom. By normal people standards they’re sitting fairly close together, but by Baekhyun-Jongdae standards the two inches between their thighs is practically miles. Even so, Baekhyun is hyper-aware of Jongdae’s proximity, the heat radiating from his body and also the way Chanyeol is staring at Baekhyun with a smug grin like he sees right through him.  


Which, unfortunately for Baekhyun, he probably does. Chanyeol’s always pestered him about his attachment to Jongdae and now that he’s acting like a shy schoolgirl, Chanyeol probably knows exactly what’s going on.  


Jongdae nods to Junmyeon’s question and reaches out to touch his fingertips to Baekhyun’s cheek. The contact catches Baekhyun by surprise and makes him jolt, his entire body lighting up with the surprise. If his cheeks glow especially pink, he’s glad nobody comments.  


“Aww, Baek, you’re practically _glowing_!” Sehun teases, and everyone else laughs.  


Not Jongdae, though. Jongdae seems worried by Baekhyun’s uncharacteristic silence and furrows his brows, lowering his hand to tangle his fingers with Baekhyun’s. It’s an attempt at a soothing gesture and, normally, it would be. Right now, though, it just makes 

Baekhyun’s control on his internal energy flow slip even more as his mental energy is redirected to the way his heart skips a beat and the softness of Jongdae’s skin against his.  


“Baekhyunnie,” Jongdae calls. Baekhyun lifts his gaze to meet Jongdae’s. “Are you okay? It doesn’t hurt, does it?”  


“Oh!” The question kind of makes Baekhyun want to laugh, because in some ways, it does hurt. Knowing he’ll have to confront these feelings one way or another, that no matter what the movies say things will change once he does, for better or for worse.  


But he shakes his head and smiles reassuringly for Jongdae, grin wide and literally bright.  


“Thank god.” Jongdae laughs, lips curling up teasingly at the corners. Baekhyun wants to kiss him. “I thought I was going to have to find someone else to cuddle with-“  


“Okay, so, if you two are done flirting?” Chanyeol interrupts.  


Baekhyun screeches in protest, would lunge at his other best friend if not for the warm hand tethering him in place. Jongdae just rolls his eyes.  


“Fuck you,” Baekhyun hisses instead. “You’re one to talk when you _swoon_ every time Kyungsoo so much as-“  


“Okay!” Junmyeon, ever the diplomat, interrupts with a clap of his hands. “Do we have any idea why this is happening...?”  


“Yes,” Sehun and Chanyeol chorus at the same time of Jongdae’s over-enthusiastic “Maybe!”  


Baekhyun recognises the way Jongdae lights up (metaphorically, in his case) with excitement: he’s about to enter Science mode. Baekhyun is also struck by just how _fondly_ he thinks that, how overwhelmingly he wants to support Jongdae and listen to him ramble about science forever just so Jongdae can always be doing what he loves. Predictably, mercifully, Junmyeon ignores Sehun and Chanyeol and motions for Jongdae to continue.  


“We all know my power involves channelling electric charge, yeah?” Jongdae glances at Baekhyun as if for approval and Baekhyun nods. He’s curious how Jongdae will explain away this phenomenon.  


“And Baekhyunnie’s involves energy manipulation,” Jongdae continues, smiling. “But in some ways electricity is just another form of energy. So I’m thinking Baek’s body must be absorbing the energy for some reason and expelling it as light, the way it knows best.”  


It sounds like a fair explanation, and Baekhyun almost wants to believe it’s that simple. But there’s a few flaws with the reasoning, like:  


“That doesn’t explain why it’s only just started happening, though,” Sehun notes.  


Junmyeon nods in agreement and Jongdae’s eyebrows furrow thoughtfully.  


“Yeah, I’ve been thinking about that too…” he murmurs.  


“Do you have any idea why it’s just started happening, Baekhyun? Anything that’s changed recently?” Junmyeon asks.  


Baekhyun knows Junmyeon means well, just wants to understand and fix this mess like the fatherly figure that he is to all of them, but he also kind of wants to strangle Junmyeon for putting him on the spot like that. Because, yes, something has changed very recently, but he’d kind of rather keep that to himself. So he shrugs and shakes his head, lips drawn into a clueless grimace.  


“Not that I’ve noticed.”  


Sehun shares a pointed look with Chanyeol and Junmyeon looks a little disappointed. Jongdae hums thoughtfully and Baekhyun can practically see him trying to make sense of this whole situation. Which he won’t be able to, because even though his explanation sounds reasonable, Baekhyun knows it’s wrong.  


He’s not sure about the details, exactly, but what he does know is that his body’s tendency to absorb and re-emit energy requires some degree of concentration to keep in check. Over the years it’s become almost as easy as breathing. Realising you’ve fallen for your all-time best friend, though, has a tendency to throw your world a little off its axis.  


So now, whenever Jongdae touches Baekhyun, his heart and brain seem to hold a race for who can go into overdrive first and Baekhyun has to put so much effort into not _blushing like a virgin_ he even forgets about keeping his powers in check. Literally glowing isn’t exactly less subtle than blushing, but at least Jongdae doesn’t understand why Baekhyun glows the way he understands the biology of blushing.  


“Well…” Junmyeon heaves a sigh. “Until we figure this whole thing out, you two probably shouldn’t touch in public.”  


Everyone blinks. Baekhyun and Jongdae are the two touchiest people among their friend group and quite possibly in the entire world. Together they’re virtually magnetic, always hooking pinkies or leaning against one another, finding any excuse to press some expanse of skin together.  


Telling them not to touch is like telling opposite charges not to attract.  


“Um- yeah.” Baekhyun grimaces awkwardly and glances at Jongdae. “He’s right. I probably shouldn’t be…lighting up all the time in public.”  


Powers are an accepted part of society, in theory. In practice, people have never been very good at accepting anything regarded as “different”, so powered humans keep the public displays to a minimum just for the sake of making their lives easier.  
Jongdae frowns. Something tugs at his heartstrings, knowing he won’t be able to just hug Baekhyun whenever the urge arises anymore.  


“God, you look like someone’s _died_ ,” Sehun whines from across the room. “You two are way too touchy anyway, it’s gross.”  


“Shut up,” Jongdae whines in return and wishes he had something to throw at Sehun.  


Baekhyun answers his silent plea when he throws a pillow at Sehun, who manages to block with a gust of air before it hits him. It hits Chanyeol in the face instead and he sputters loudly, making Jongdae laugh, loud and sharp.  


Baekhyun watches him, expression fond. He catches Junmyeon staring at him from the corner of his eye and flushes, glaring pointedly at the water-powered as if daring him to say anything. Junmyeon merely grins then busies himself breaking up the mini brawl that’s broken out between Chanyeol and Sehun. Baekhyun sighs. He checks his phone and sees Tinder messages awaiting him, including one from the very, very cute girl he’d been chatting up for a week or so.  


“Meet anyone interesting?” Jongdae chirps suddenly from next to him, leaning in close to peek at Baekhyun’s screen.  
Baekhyun bites his lip.  


“No, not really. I’m thinking of uninstalling it.”  


Jongdae grins like this amuses him.  


“You? Uninstall one of your number one sources of hook-ups? I’ll believe it when I see it, Baekhyunnie!” he coos obnoxiously and stands, saying something about ‘I think we can finish up this family meeting now’.  


“ _Almost_ family meeting,” Chanyeol corrects as Jongdae heads off to his room.  


“Yes, Yeol, we get it, Kyungsoo isn’t here and you’re sad because you wish you were sucking his di-“  


Chanyeol screeches and slaps a hand over Sehun’s mouth, eliciting an ugly cackle from the youngest. Baekhyun is covering his face, wishing he could somehow un-know these people (or at least move so he doesn’t live literally across the hall from them) as Junmyeon drags a flustered Chanyeol to the kitchen to make dinner for them all.  


“So. Uninstalling Tinder? You’re in _deep_ ,” Sehun says when it’s just him and Baekhyun left in the living room. “Everyone’s been waiting for one of you to realise you’re not just friends but I didn’t really think it would be this…lit.”  


He snickers and Baekhyun flusters, glancing at the door Jongdae had left through.  


“Would you shut _up_?” he hisses. How the hell had everyone else supposedly realised he liked Jongdae before he did?  


Sehun looks like he’s about to continue teasing Baekhyun but Jongdae springs back into the room wearing his pyjamas: sweatpants and the Schrodinger’s cat shirt Baekhyun had bought him for his last birthday.  


“You!” He points at Baekhyun, whose eyes widen. “We have another Star Wars movie to watch tonight, remember?”  


Sehun rolls his eyes, muttering about ‘Junmyeon does enough Star Wars fanboying’ for him to deal with.  


Baekhyun does remember, but he’d been half-expecting Jongdae to forget about it. He supposes that’s his own fault for thinking Jongdae could forget anything Star Wars related. His first mistake, really, had been admitting he’d never seen the movies.  


“The guys are making dinner, do you wanna eat with them first?” he asks.  


“What are they making?” Jongdae makes his way over to Baekhyun and plops down next to him, close. Too close, now that Baekhyun’s hyper-aware of his every movement.  


“Um-“ his brain chooses that moment to short-circuit. The Schrodinger’s cat shirt is pretty baggy on Jongdae’s frame and flashes plenty of collarbone when Jongdae leans curiously closer.  


“Spaghetti bolognaise,” Sehun supplies, helpful for the first time all evening.  


Jongdae hums thoughtfully for a moment, weighing the meal up against the Chinese takeout menu practically imprinted into the back of his eyelids.  


“Let’s eat with everyone. My wallet’s feeling a little light, I could use a break from takeout,” Baekhyun jokes, making Jongdae snort. Really, Baekhyun just wants to stall curling up in a dark room alone with Jongdae for as long as possible, but takeout is expensive.  


“Okay.” Jongdae offers him a cute little smile. “That way eating won’t distract you from the movie!”  


Baekhyun finds himself thinking rather grimly that something else might, though. Fortunately, dinner passes rather uneventfully, with Kyungsoo arriving about halfway through and glaring daggers at Junmyeon when he catches sight of the state of his kitchen.  


“I was going to clean it up-“  


“ _Don’t_. Just, stop using my goddamn kitchen.”  


Junmyeon can just barely cook the most basic of basics (like spaghetti), but he is also the king of mess. Baekhyun and Jongdae creep back to their apartment before the conversation can escalate into Kyungsoo chasing Junmyeon around the place with a dishcloth- a terrifyingly common occurrence.  


Baekhyun changes into his own pyjamas and settles with Jongdae in his bed. Jongdae’s laptop is propped up on his desk, easily visible from his bed. They’re about halfway through the movie and Baekhyun is struggling to focus on the plot, distracted by how close Jongdae is to him. Normally he’d simply reach over and pull Jongdae against him; they’d wrestle around until they were comfortably wrapped in blankets and each other. Now, though, Baekhyun doesn’t particularly want to light the room like a beacon while they watch Star Wars.  


Until Jongdae reaches for his hand and laces their fingers together, facing Baekhyun with a stubborn look when he glows in surprise.  


“Um,” Baekhyun begins, unsure how to react. His powers really are making this very difficult for him and he can only silently thank whatever deity might or might not exist that Jongdae is as oblivious as he is.  


“It’s fine. I’d rather be able to cuddle,” Jongdae dismisses.  


He pulls Baekhyun towards him until Baekhyun’s back is to his chest and he’s watching the movie with a chin hooked over Baekhyun’s shoulder, pointedly ignoring the light his best friend is giving off even if it is a little distracting. Baekhyun, though, has to bite his lip to keep from smiling too wide. There are butterflies dancing about in his stomach and he’s definitely having a harder time focusing on the movie now, with Jongdae’s breath ghosting over his neck every few seconds, but it’s comfortable. Jongdae has always been comfortable.  


When he feels the familiar, faint sensation of Jongdae’s electricity dissipating into his skin, Baekhyun snickers and drapes a hand over Jongdae’s around his waist.  


“This is the real reason you were so adamant on cuddling, isn’t it?”  


Jongdae whines softly.  


“Cut me some slack, I almost electrocuted myself in the shower this morning.”  


“Well _maybe_ if you weren’t taking almost three extra classes you wouldn’t build up so much excess charge, you absolute nerd. You need to relax more.”  


“It’s not my fault the physics department decided to offer the introduction to astrophysics and math methods in the same year,” Jongdae grumbles.  


“Nerd,” Baekhyun repeats, tilting his head back to stick his tongue out at Jongdae.  


He yelps when Jongdae tickles him in revenge, glowing bright enough to light up half the room. It’s only when Baekhyun screeches for mercy and Kyungsoo yells through their _front door_ for them to shut up that Jongdae stops. They have to rewind the last fifteen minutes of the movie because neither of them had paid any attention, but Baekhyun doesn’t really mind when he finds himself lying comfortably with his head in Jongdae’s lap.  


The glow, surprisingly, dims down after a while. Jongdae chalks it up to Baekhyun’s body finding some kind of equilibrium and says as much, to which Baekhyun simply shrugs because he knows it has more to do with the soothing brush of Jongdae’s fingers through his hair than anything else.  


He’s calmed down a little, for now. He hopes he can learn to live with having a gigantic crush on his best friend.  


\---  


It proves difficult, at first. Baekhyun plops down at their table for lunch in between Chanyeol and Minseok, deciding he should probably sit away from Jongdae for a while. But only one person away; he’s not ready to be all the way across the table from him.  


“Are you okay?” Minseok asks him, looking genuinely concerned.  


“You look like shit,” Chanyeol supplies helpfully.  


He yelps when a grumpy Baekhyun smacks him across the arm.  


“Jeez, you get so angry when you haven’t gotten laid in a while,” the giant grumbles and returns to his food.  


“Do you want me to punch you for real?” Baekhyun deadpans, picking tiredly at his own meal.  


He really hadn’t slept very well. After finishing the movie and going back to his room, the reality of his situation had set in. He had feelings for Jongdae, something that could, well, _ruin_ their friendship. And as if dealing with that wasn’t already hard enough, he couldn’t stop glowing every time Jongdae so much as brushed hands with him. Even if Jongdae was the king of oblivion, between the glowing and Baekhyun acting potentially weird, it wouldn’t take him long to figure things out.  


Baekhyun sighs as he watches Jongdae laugh, sharing some funny story with Kyungsoo. With the way his eyes crinkle and lips curl prettily at the corners when he smiles, Baekhyun finds himself wondering if Jongdae isn’t the real light-powered one between them. Then he wrinkles his nose at himself for the cheesy thought.  


Jongdae finally turns toward him and Baekhyun honest to god almost switches on like a lightbulb then and there, because Jongdae looks at him so happily.  


“Hey!” he chirps.  


Baekhyun grins. Chanyeol snorts and calls him a puppy, but Baekhyun ignores him.  


“Hey to you. Haven’t seen you all morning, too busy running from class to class, nerd?”  


Jongdae pouts.  


“First you don’t even sit next to me, now you insult me. I’m so hurt, Baekhyunnie.”  


He reaches across Chanyeol for Baekhyun’s hand and Baekhyun pulls away, eyes wide. Jongdae blinks, seeming startled before he remembers himself and laughs nervously, masking a crestfallen expression with an embarrassed grin.  


“I forgot,” he says, sheepishly.  


He then sticks his tongue out at Baekhyun and reaches for Chanyeol’s arm, pulling the limb close like a pillow. Chanyeol is unphased, used to how touchy some of them are (and he far from shies away from physical contact himself). He does, however, shoot a slightly pouty Baekhyun a shit-eating grin that earns him a kick in the shin.  


“Ow!”  


“He did warn you. Kind of,” Minseok muses.  


Jongdae watches the interaction with a fond smile before he turns back to Kyungsoo to finish telling the story about how one of their tutors had unwittingly dissed a student. The ensuing giggles and stories about Kyungsoo’s bizarre philosophy lecturer make Jongdae feel a little better, but he’s been stressed out lately and as he glances in Baekhyun’s direction and sees him nuzzling up to Minseok’s side, Jongdae can’t help but feel like Baekhyun would make him feel even better.  


“Dae? You okay?” Chanyeol asks, noticing the little frown on Jongdae’s lips.  


“Oh-“ Jongdae looks up and grins, nodding. He lets go of Chanyeol, though, because it doesn’t help the way hugging Baekhyun would. “Yeah, I’m fine. Classes are just a lot, you know?”  


And they really are a lot. The next few days see Jongdae working late, doing his best to keep up his habit of recopying his lecture notes neatly every day while also balancing the handful of deadlines looming on the horizon. Baekhyun eventually finds him at the kitchen table at two in the morning, still writing diligently, his four gel pens laid out neatly next to the lined paper pad Jongdae uses for his neat notes. There’s a textbook open to his side that he’s squinting at; their kitchen light is a little dim, and it definitely isn’t making things any easier for Jongdae.  


“What are you doing up? Don’t you have early classes?” Jongdae asks when he sees Baekhyun walk into the kitchen, pyjamas already on and eyes droopy with sleepiness.  


“I was playing League. I’ll skip and catch up later.”  


Baekhyun flashes Jongdae a shameless grin when Jongdae rolls his eyes. He grabs a can of diet coke and makes himself comfortable next to Jongdae at the dining table.  


“What are _you_ doing up? You’re starting to look half dead, Dae.”  


He pushes away the thought that Jongdae actually looks adorable, so sleepy but still working away diligently. And wearing his _glasses_. Baekhyun officially has a love-hate relationship with those glasses.  


“I’ve got too many deadlines to be getting seven hours of sleep this week,” Jongdae sighs and takes off his glasses.  


Baekhyun notices the distinct smell of copper in the air.  


“Dae,” he breathes. “I really think you need to rest…”  


“I can’t,” Jongdae insists, frustrated. “I haven’t even started on my lab report and it’s due the day after tomorrow-“  
Baekhyun reaches out for Jongdae’s hand and takes it in his. Jongdae falls silent, relief flooding his system as some of the excess energy, the excess charge in his body flows away into Baekhyun’s, which is glowing a pleasantly soft sunbeam shade. This is what makes Baekhyun’s touch unique for Jongdae, the way he absorbs away the excess electric energy that builds up in Jongdae’s body when he bottles it up for too long.  


That, and the fact that it’s Baekhyun. Mostly the fact that it’s Baekhyun.  


“Thank you,” Jongdae murmurs, sounding so tired Baekhyun’s heart aches for him so he shifts wordlessly closer.  


“Why are you in the kitchen anyway? The lighting in here is shit, you’re going to strain your eyes,” Baekhyun whines softly.  


“The dining table’s like twice as big as my desk,” Jongdae sighs, rubbing at his indeed tired eyes. “It’s a lot easier to spread out my stuff..”  


Baekhyun hums thoughtfully.  


“Are you planning on staying up much longer?”  


Jongdae wrinkles his nose distastefully and nods. He really wants to sleep, but it’s just not in the cards for him. He puts his glasses back on and is about to get back to reading through his textbook to supplement his notes on binary stars when the light suddenly brightens, making the words much easier to read.  


Baekhyun smiles at Jongdae, cushioning his head on the table while the other still holds onto Jongdae’s non-writing hand. Baekhyun hopes his overflowing affection for his best friend isn’t written as plainly on his face as he thinks it is.  


“I’ll stay up with you.”  


Jongdae blinks and shakes his head, ready to protest, but Baekhyun fixes him with a look that Jongdae knows well. It leaves no room for argument. Instead, Jongdae leans in and plants a grateful kiss against Baekhyun’s cheek. He swears the light flickers for a second while Baekhyun stares back at him, eyes wide with surprise.  


“You’re the best,” Jongdae murmurs.  


Baekhyun _really_ hopes Jongdae can’t hear his heart racing in his chest. He wants to groan in distress. Of all people, he just _had_ to crush on his best friend. How was he ever possibly going to get over him?  


Fortunately for him, he soon falls asleep. His body is accustomed enough to maintaining the light level in the kitchen that it doesn’t dim, but his glow fades as his energy output settles under the control of his subconscious. Asleep, Baekhyun is not hyper-aware of Jongdae’s every touch, not so thrown out of his element that his control slips.  


Jongdae looks up from his work when that little extra light source goes out. He smiles, full of affection when he sees that Baekhyun has fallen asleep beside him. He reaches out to gently brush a few stray strands of hair out of Baekhyun’s face, a little surprised when there is no glow in response despite the fact that Baekhyun’s powers are clearly active- the kitchen light is still bright.  


Shouldn’t his body be absorbing charge? Emitting the excess energy as light, for some reason they have yet to figure out?  


He racks his brain for answers, brows furrowing as he tries to find some reasonable explanation. Maybe it’s because Baekhyun’s subconscious energy storage works differently to his conscious one? With a sigh and another soft little glance at Baekhyun, Jongdae gets back to work. He really wants to figure this out so they can fix it and go back to being glued at the hip 25/8.  


\---  


That weekend finds everyone dragged to a house party, courtesy of Chanyeol and Sehun who insisted everyone needed to ‘lighten up, except Baekhyun’. Even Baekhyun had laughed at that.  


He likes parties, likes the loud music and getting a little (or a lot) tipsy. He likes dancing, too, and usually likes dancing with strangers, maybe even going home with them. But he doesn’t really feel like going home with someone tonight, mostly because he can’t seem to tear his attention away from Jongdae who’s across the kitchen counter from him, looking hotter than usual with his hair styled upwards and wearing a mesh t-shirt under a pink bomber jacket.  


Minseok is there too; all three of them are talking, but Baekhyun’s had a few drinks and he really wants to dance. He pouts, because normally he would just drag everyone along with him, but he still can’t touch Jongdae in public.  


“I want to dance,” he whines, interrupting Jongdae and Minseok’s little chatter about their new lecturer.  


How they’re both surviving studying something like Physics, Baekhyun will never understand.  


“Then dance?” Minseok suggests, raising a brow.  


“It’s not that simple,” Baekhyun mumbles, glancing at Jongdae who’s watching him with a small smile.  


“If you want to dance, you should, Baekhyunnie.” He points behind Baekhyun. “Those girls seem pretty interested.”  


Baekhyun glances over his shoulder towards a pair of girls dancing in the living room. One of them is looking his way and smiles shyly. On any other day, he’d have been all over that- but today he has an obnoxious crush on his best friend. He smiles back, to be polite, then turns back to Minseok and Jongdae who are watching him expectantly.  


“Maybe later,” he dismisses, because he would rather not announce that he wants to stay with Jongdae more than he wants to get laid.  


Even though it’s been a couple of weeks now.  


Jongdae seems surprised by the answer and Minseok glances between the pair of them for a moment. He seems to light up with realization and Baekhyun has to resist the urge to drag an exasperated hand down his face.  


“...Riiight…” Minseok drawls, eyeing Baekhyun pointedly. “You probably need some time to really think about whether you want to dance with some _super cute girls_.”  


“Shut up,” Baekhyun hisses, making Minseok raise his hands in mock-innocence.  


“I didn’t say anything!” he laughs.  


Jongdae watches the exchange with some confusion.  


“So you’re not going to dance…?” he asks. It’s adorable to Baekhyun how uncertain he sounds.  


“Nah.” Baekhyun shoots him a grin. “Maybe later,” he repeats.  


Jongdae grins back and goes back to joking with Minseok about how many of their professors like to diss Chemistry. Baekhyun leans against the counter, content to just watch and listen for now. If Minseok wants to tease him about the obviously dreamy look on his face later, he can deal with that.  


And if he’s a little sad about the fact that he and Jongdae hadn’t reached for each other once all evening, he tries not to let it show.  


Eventually, though, Jongin finds them and makes a big fuss about the fact that Baekhyun isn’t dancing yet. He drags a protesting Baekhyun out into the living room to join him and Yixing and it isn’t long before the three of them are laughing and jamming to the EDM blasting through the host’s speakers.  


Jongdae watches Baekhyun with a soft smile from his place next to Junmyeon and Kyungsoo. As per usual, he looks like he’s having the time of his life, dancing his heart out. His movements are surprisingly fluid and Jongdae wishes he could be dancing with him, even though he knows his own dancing would look extra jerky next to Baekhyun’s confident movements. But they might accidentally touch, and in the dimly lit room Baekhyun’s glow would be impossible to miss.  


More than anything, Jongdae just really wants a hug from his favorite person. Even after a beer or two he’s still super stressed about his workload and being at this party is beginning to feel more and more like a waste of time. Instinctively, he reaches out for the person closest to him, letting go quickly when they yelp.  


“Did you just _shock_ me?” Junmyeon asks, lip jutting out in the tiniest of pouts while he rubs his forearm. “What was that for?”  


Jongdae rubs his face tiredly.  


“Sorry, Jun. I didn’t mean to.” It must have really hurt, what with Junmyeon’s increased water conductivity. “You okay?”  
Junmyeon furrows his brows. Even Kyungsoo looks at him with a little worry.  


“Yeah, are _you_? You look pretty tired, do you want me to take you home?”  


Part of Jongdae wants to say yes, but that part is also subconsciously equating home with cuddling up to Baekhyun. He glances towards the living room, where Baekhyun’s still laughing with Jongin while Yixing throws out a few robot moves. Jongdae decides he doesn’t want to give up on the night yet, and also doesn’t want to pull Junmyeon away.  


He shakes his head and forces his signature grin.  


“I think I’m going to get some fresh air, actually. Just a little tired, like you said.”  


Junmyeon shrugs and Jongdae gives him a little wave before walking off. Outside, the air is cold and he leans against the wall of the house, pouting because he doesn’t understand why his emotions are such a mess, even if his nerves are a little frazzled. He wonders if those beers were a mistake. The alcohol is making him more tired than anything.  


Inside, Baekhyun catches a glimpse of Jongdae heading outside when he looks over. He excuses himself, sticking his tongue out at Jongin when the younger complains about being abandoned despite the fact that Yixing is still with him.  


“Go find Sehun to dance with, I’m sure he’d be more than willing!” Baekhyun yells over the music and giggles the whole way to the door.  


After all Sehun’s teasing him for liking Jongdae, it feels nice to get a little payback. Not that he has any faith at all Jongin will take the hint, because oblivion seems to run in their friend group.  


Baekhyun slips outside and sees Jongdae, head tipped back against the wall and eyes closed. He steps closer, ignoring the thought of how much he wants to kiss him (the alcohol in his system really isn’t helping in that regard).  


“Boo.”  


Jongdae startles, his eyes flying wide open.  


“What the- why are you like this?!” he whines, clutching his chest dramatically while Baekhyun laughs loudly.  


Jongdae already feels better.  


“You looked too peaceful. I had to come bother you.”  


Baekhyun grins shamelessly after he says this.  


“So why are you moping out here? You’ve had, like, one beer, that’s not nearly enough to be sad drunk, even for you.”  


Jongdae’s cheeks puff up.  


“For the last time, I don’t get sad drunk that easily! I was just having a bad day,” he protests. He’s drunk cried once or twice and nobody has _ever_ let it go.  


“Right, right, you just happened to be having a bad day all four… five, six times.” Baekhyun nods overenthusiastically, breaking down into a fit of giggles when Jongdae just glares in response.  


When Jongdae only continues to pout, Baekhyun calms himself and softens, entire posture relaxing. Jongdae finds it almost overwhelming, how warm Baekhyun looks with his gentle smile and that slight, ever-present iridescence to his skin, just barely visible in the dim lighting.  


“Really, though, what’s up?” Baekhyun urges.  


“I don’t know.” Jongdae sighs. He feels frustrated, because he really isn’t sure what exactly is wrong. “…I’m just not having a great night.”  


Baekhyun wishes, not for the first time, that he could wrap Jongdae up in a tight hug and steal away all of his worries. Someone like Jongdae should only ever smile.  


He frowns. He’d always known they were touchy, but it wasn’t until they had to restrict themselves in public that he ever realized just _how_ touchy. Or how overwhelmingly he could want to feel someone’s palm pressed against his.  


“Come dance?” he urges, nudging Jongdae’s foot with his own.  


It’s a little risky, but it might make Jongdae feel better, so Baekhyun wants to try. They’re standing close together now, a kind of subconscious compensation for not being able to touch.  


“I can get us Jager bombs or something.” Baekhyun suggests, eyeing Jongdae playfully. “You look like you could use some Redbull in your system.”  


Jongdae snorts.  


“Maybe, but I hardly think _you_ need an energy drink in you. Are you sure you’re not secretly an incarnation of the Sun? I swear there’s a fusion reactor hidden in you somewhere,” he jabs and lifts a hand like he wants to poke Baekhyun in the stomach.  


He stops before he can and Baekhyun is pleased to see there’s a little grin on his face, even if it has faltered slightly.  


The door opens again and Chanyeol steps out together with Kyungsoo and Sehun. Chanyeol takes one glance at them, grins evilly, and shoves Baekhyun forward before he can react. Baekhyun stumbles, just barely catching himself with hands on either side of Jongdae’s face. He’s grateful for the dark to mask some of the brilliant red he must be blushing as he stares wide-eyed at his best friend, their faces centimeters apart.  


Jongdae is frozen, eyes just as wide. Baekhyun expects him to break out into a fit of laughter and shove him away, but instead he looks down, seeming shy all of a sudden.  


Baekhyun pulls away a few moments later and glares at Chanyeol, who’s snickering together with Sehun.  


“What the fuck!” he whines.  


“You’re welcome!” Chanyeol teases and Jongdae shoots Baekhyun a weird look.  
Even Kyungsoo has a knowing little smirk on his lips and Baekhyun mimes kicking them all, panicking when Kyungsoo takes that opportunity to catch his leg.  


“Wait, shit, let go-“  


“What was that, lift your leg higher?”  


“Soo, I swear to _god_ if I end up on my ass,” Baekhyun threatens, not very threatening considering he’s currently hopping on one foot trying to keep his balance.  


He’s relieved, though, when he hears Jongdae laughing behind him, peeling himself away from the wall.  


“Dae, save me!” Baekhyun pouts.  


“Let him go, Soo,” Jongdae urges, ever the voice of reason. God, Baekhyun likes him so much. “If he gets hurt I’m going to be the one he whines to most.”  


At that, Kyungsoo cackles and lets Baekhyun go while Chanyeol whoops obnoxiously behind him about needing cold water for that _burn_. Baekhyun takes it back, Jongdae sucks. He glances at him and Jongdae smiles too-innocently back at him. Baekhyun sticks his tongue out.  


“Rude." He huffs. "Ready to go back in?” he adds quickly, before his friends can embarrass him further.  


Jongdae seems to pause, meeting Baekhyun’s eyes and staring for a moment before he breaks out into a grin.  


“Yeah.”  


“Jager bombs?” Baekhyun prompts, and Jongdae’s grin widens.  


“Hell yeah,” he laughs, and Baekhyun has to physically resist the urge to wrap an arm around his waist as they step inside and make a beeline for the kitchen.  


Baekhyun pours them both two Jager bombs and they toast. He just barely manages not to spill half his drink all over himself.  


“To us!” He winks exaggeratedly and Jongdae snorts.  


“To figuring out why you’ve suddenly turned into a human lightbulb,” he leans in to murmur and Baekhyun can feel himself going through at least four different shades of pink.  


They end up dancing together despite the risk, just tipsy enough not to care, especially when someone puts on Despacito and they sing along obnoxiously even when they don’t know any of the Spanish. Jongdae doesn’t realise he’s pulled Baekhyun close by his waist until Baekhyun is glowing in the dark room and some people around them groan at the sudden light source, blinking their eyes. He lets go quickly and Baekhyun dims, laughing awkwardly.  


“Sorry about that!” Baekhyun yells out, a little embarrassed but really it’s no big deal.  


That should be the end of that, but then Jongdae catches someone flipping them off and his veins feel frozen over all of a sudden.  


“Fucking Powereds killing the vibe,” he hears them grumble.  


Baekhyun hears it too and immediately looks at Jongdae, who’s always been the sensitive one, always a little softer against Baekhyun’s edges that have sharpened from years of being told to shut up, or worse. A consequence of having such a loud, flirty personality. He can make out Jongdae’s furrowed brows and his downcast gaze. That’s all Baekhyun needs before he’s defiantly grabbing Jongdae’s hand. He ignores the disgruntled noises around them and drags Jongdae out the front door.  


“Baek, wait-”  


“Let’s just go home, Dae.” Baekhyun turns to smile softly at Jongdae despite the anger he feels.  


“But it’s not even midnight…” Jongdae trails off, voice small and unsure.  


Baekhyun lets go of Jongdae’s hand and for a short, terrible moment, Jongdae fears he’s letting go. But then Baekhyun just slides his fingers between Jongdae’s, holding his hand properly this time. He’s glowing again, that beautiful moonlight shade, and it makes the reassuring grin he shoots Jongdae extra blinding.  


“I don’t want to party with a bunch of idiots, anyway.”  


Baekhyun is just happy Jongdae doesn’t seem to mind the fact that he’s lit up like a streetlamp. Or, at least, doesn’t mind enough to pull away from him.  


“Sorry for-”  


“Don’t even,” Baekhyun interrupts, because he knows Jongdae more than well enough to know he’s feeling terrible about the whole ordeal even though he did nothing wrong.  


Jongdae turns to him.  


“...Five more minutes and I probably would’ve been the one to touch you first, anyway,” Baekhyun continues softly, a little shy, but at least it pulls a smile out of Jongdae.  


“Yeah. This whole thing is pretty annoying, isn’t it?”  


Baekhyun only hums in response, watching as Jongdae pulls out his phone to call and let their friends know they’ve left.  


“Yeah, we’re fine Soo, don’t worry. Just wanted to get out of there.” Jongdae pauses to listen to whatever Kyungsoo has to say. “...Yeah, I’ll let you know when we get home. We’re walking so it’ll probably be another twenty minutes. Mhm, we’ll come over in the morning. Bye, Soo!”  


Baekhyun is amazed at how thoughtful Jongdae always is, even now, when Baekhyun is sure he’s replaying the party scene in his head over and over. He doesn’t even realize he’s squeezing Jongdae’s hand until the other looks his way again.  


“Hm?”  


Baekhyun blinks.  


“Oh, um. Are you alright?”  


Jongdae grins and reaches over to pinch Baekhyun’s cheek, who whines and swats at his hand.  


“Awww, are you worried about little old me?” There’s a disarmingly soft quality to the way Jongdae is looking at him. “It’s like you said. They’re a bunch of idiots. I’m fine, Baekhyunnie.”  


“Okay,” Baekhyun murmurs.  


Jongdae pulls him closer and wraps an arm around his waist. They walk the rest of the way home like that, both of them too lost in thought to comment on the way Baekhyun dims after a while when the press of Jongdae’s body against his becomes more soothing than anything else.  


\---  


The first time it happens, they’re in their shared living room a week or so later. This time, Jongdae isn’t studying, although he has his books open in front of him. Instead, he’s staring out the window, seemingly daydreaming when Baekhyun creeps up and hugs him from behind.  


“Ow!”  


Baekhyun pulls away quickly, eyes wide.  


“You…shocked me.” He laughs incredulously.  


Jongdae is staring at him, looking just as surprised and- is he blushing?  


“You...surprised me.” There’s a note of revelation in Jongdae’s voice.  


“You’ve never shocked me before!”  


Baekhyun knows he’s pouting, but he really isn’t sure whether he should be worried about this or not. When he reaches out to touch Jongdae’s arm, there’s another little spark and he flinches at the sting in his fingertips. He wants to speak up but Jongdae looks deep in thought, the way he looks when he’s solving some of his more difficult problem sheets, so Baekhyun waits. He decides to take the chance to admire Jongdae’s profile, the perfect angle of his nose and sharp line of his jaw.  


He ends up so zoned out it startles him when Jongdae turns to him suddenly, eyes bright.  


“…I have a theory. About why your powers have been acting up lately.”  


He stands and Baekhyun watches him warily. Part of him is nervous, but it’s hard to feel too worries when Jongdae’s lips are curled up into his signature grin.  


“You do?” Baekhyun asks, fidgeting. 

He does wonder where this is coming from so suddenly. If Sehun or Chanyeol said anything he’s going to kill them. Jongdae presses his lips together. He’s looking at Baekhyun like he’s evaluating something, almost like he’s doing a mental risk assessment before an experiment.  


“Maybe,” he murmurs finally, still grinning.  


Baekhyun is beginning to think this is an elaborate prank when Jongdae steps closer and cups Baekhyun’s cheeks softly, mercifully without shocking him this time. Baekhyun lights up immediately, heart leaping up into his throat  


“What are you doing?” he asks weakly.  


Jongdae doesn’t answer, just giggles and leans in, catching Baekhyun’s lips against his. Baekhyun feels like he could light up a whole _stadium_ and tentatively presses back, confused but entirely unwilling to complain. They don’t kiss for very long before Jongdae pulls away, his eyes squeezed shut.  


“Baek, you’ve got to calm down,” he laughs.  


It takes Baekhyun a moment to process what he means before he lets out a soft ‘oh’ and takes a few deep breaths to reel in his powers. When the room is dimmed back to its usual levels, Jongdae opens his eyes and stares fondly at Baekhyun. He’s still cupping Baekhyun’s cheeks.  


Baekhyun waits, for once not saying anything, too dazed.  


“When you touched me, I couldn’t seem to keep control of my charge flow. It kind of, burst out.”  


“Yeah.”  


“Because I was distracted.”  


“...Yeah.”  


“Because I was too busy freaking out about my crush touching me.”  


Baekhyun lights up, metaphorically this time. He laughs happily.  


“Yeah?” he urges.  


Jongdae bites his lip to keep from smiling too wide.  


“I think I know why you keep lighting up whenever I touch you, Baekhyunnie.” His tone is teasing.  


“What’s your theory?” Baekhyun counters, equally teasing.  


“That you _like_ me.” Jongdae looks so pleased when he says it, Baekhyun can’t even bring himself to feel embarrassed.  


“Well, I think you have a pretty promising future career in Physics, Dae,” he begins, settling his hands on Jongdae’s hips. “Because your theory’s spot on.”  


Jongdae’s smile as he drapes his arms around Baekhyun’s neck is practically blinding. Baekhyun feels a little giddy.  


“Glad to hear it,” he hums. “And also, as cute as it is, we _really_ need to work on the whole lighting up every time I touch you thing. I’m going to be really annoyed if I can’t even touch my boyfriend in public.”  


Before Baekhyun can really react, Jongdae kisses him again.  


They’ll work on the light bulb thing.


End file.
